Spiritually Thirsty – Being a Pilgrim

“My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else. I have been following the plan spoken of in the Scriptures, where it says, “Those who have never been told about him will see, and those who have never heard of him will understand.” In fact, my visit to you has been delayed so long because I have been preaching in these places.”
Romans 15:20-22 NLT

Paul was very clear about what really floated his boat – his preference was for being a church planter in virgin territory, in places where the inhabitants had never heard the Gospel before. Throughout the Middle East in those days communications were poor, so the Good News about Christ was carried by word of mouth, by itinerant preachers such as Paul. No internet or social media to spread the news. So it would have been very possible for Paul and his entourage to walk into a new place, and find a harvest of people desperate for some Good News. We read what happened at Philippi, with a lady called Lydia. The story is recorded in Acts 16, “On the Sabbath we went a little way outside the city to a riverbank, where we thought people would be meeting for prayer, and we sat down to speak with some women who had gathered there. One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth, who worshiped God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. She and her household were baptised … ” (Acts 16:13-15a). There were people around with a God-awareness in those days, but the Good News of Jesus and God’s plan for the salvation of mankind was not widely known, even though it was prophesied in the Bible. In Ephesians 3, Paul referred to God’s plan as being mysterious, but from Paul’s lips came the simple but profound facts of Christ, His sacrifice at Calvary, and the way to God “through the dark paths of sin”. Good News indeed.

But Paul’s heart as a Pastor wasn’t in doubt. We read his letters and see the care and love he had for both the churches he planted and those he didn’t. The Ephesians and the Galatians. The Philippians and the Romans. All received, with others, his letters of correction and encouragement. But his heart was really in bringing new souls into the Kingdom of God.

Fast forward to 21st Century Western society. Some have started to refer to the current age as being “post-Christian”. We have the many church buildings, mostly unique and very beautiful, particularly here in the UK, dotted around our landscape, like monuments to the glory of a past age, where people worshipped a person they called God. Prayers written in an antique style were read in unison from elderly books; songs they called hymns with strange lyrics were sung to tunes unfamiliar to today’s ear. And we now have a generation, or more, who may have a God-awareness, but not in a worshipful way like Lydia and her family. In today’s society, the name of God is more likely to be heard as a swear word than in a worshipful prayer. The only contact with God most have is at a church wedding or in a funeral service, rituals quickly forgotten in the celebrations afterwards.

But there is hope, because our wonderful Heavenly Father planted within every person an awareness of Himself. In Genesis 1:27 we read, “So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them”. We can try and suppress our inner feelings, but the reality is that each human being has within him God’s image. People try and find something to fill the God-hole within them with spiritual activities like Yoga or they delve into things like horoscopes. But they soon find that the emptiness is still there. Others try and fill the gap with materialistic activities. People talk about “retail therapy”, or they claim closeness to nature with their gardens or eco-activities. But only God can fill the yearning, the spiritual thirstiness, within them. We pilgrims have the opportunity, through the power that is within us, to tap into that spiritual awareness, and bring the only lasting solution. Jesus invited the thirsty to come to Him. We read what he said in John 7:37-38a, “On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink!“”

What do we pilgrims have an ambition for? Of course we have to earn a living, but do we search after promotion in our companies or do we put our earthly yearnings to one side and, like Paul, say that we, “ … would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2b). Promotion to a higher position in our employment won’t help the lost around us. But our testimonies and preaching about Christ could just promote them into Heavenly places.

Dear Father God. Please help us prioritise our lives to get them aligned with Your will and purposes. For Jesus’ sake.Amen.

“The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.”
Revelation‬ ‭22‬:‭17‬ ‭NLT

Just a few verses before in Revelation 22, Jesus had given John an invitation. He said, “Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds.” (‭‭Revelation‬ ‭22‬:‭12). And now the invitation rings out again. Loud and clear. There can be no excuse that people never heard it. After Jesus it is the turn of the Holy Spirit to say, “Come!”. And just to make sure, the bride also says, “Come!”. Of course, we know that the bride is the church – we have read much about the Bride of Christ in previous Revelation Scriptures. So we have an alliance, a partnership, between the Holy Spirit and the Church; an invitation from Spirit-filled churches is powerful. And the next invitation in verse 17 is from all who hear the “Come” and repeat it to those around them.

But those who respond to the invitation have to be thirsty. And the thirst must relate to the “water of life”, freely given by our wonderfully generous God. This “water of life” is the same drink Jesus promised the woman at the well. He said in John 4:14, “But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” Jesus gave the invitation again in John 7:37-38, “On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart’””. The invitation is there to be accepted. But as the old saying goes, “you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink”. Unless people are thirsty for this living water promised by Jesus, they won’t drink it. They prefer the worldly drinks, even as the woman at the well discovered, finding out that anything of the world never satisfies and leads to a life of enslavement to drudgery.

Verse 17 in Revelation 22 starts with “The Spirit and the bride”. Notice that it is not the church on its own extending the invitation. Neither is it the Holy Spirit who is just saying “Come”. It is a joint invitation from the Holy Spirit and the Church. This may be an obvious point, but without the Holy Spirit, a church cannot effectively ask people to come and drink of the living water offered by Jesus. This is a because a church without the Holy Spirit won’t have a supply of living water. It will be as dry and arid as any natural desert. Sadly, the Holy Spirit left many churches long ago, but the dwindling and elderly congregations are still offering what they don’t have. And those in the world find out that there is nothing there for them. Perhaps all churches should ask themselves the question, “Would we know if the Holy Spirit left us?” The answer to that question could fill a book on its own.

So we pilgrims, those of us who have already responded to the invitation to “Come”, who are already drinking of the life-giving water, must extend the invitation to those around us. There are plenty of thirsty people around – I meet some every day on my morning prayer walks. We pray for the opportunity to connect people’s spiritual thirst with the life-giving water. Only Jesus can turn on the tap. And only people can propagate the “Rivers of living water” that flow from God’s throne.

Dear Father God. We pray for a fresh filling of Your Holy Spirit today. We know You have more than enough living water to quench our thirsts. We are so grateful. Amen.